will-o-the-witch

[will-o-the-witch]

bring back tumblr ask culture let me. bother you with questions and statements

[will-o-the-witch]

ma'am, I'm going to place you on a brief hold while I look for a reaction image

[will-o-the-witch]

I also think a really important part of working with omens is outlining for yourself what does count.

Don't just make guidelines for what discredits/discounts potential omens.

Also make guidelines for what validates them! If you're going to make The Powers That Be play frogger with your discrediting hammer, also give them a path to success. Give your omens win conditions.

Your omen is "black oak tree". What counts?

"I accept this omen is true if..."

I see the black oak species of tree referenced in everyday life (*not native to my area)

I see artwork of a black-colored deciduous tree that at least looks like an oak

I have at least 1 serendipitous** encounter where the word/color black and the word/tree oak are both featured

If partial omens are received that I'm unsure about, it will be validated if I also dream about a black oak, or a striking combination of black things combined with oak trees

**serendipitous: strangely fortunate, unusually lucky, surprisingly coincidental

[will-o-the-witch]

Dragon Hoard Bowls

Dragon bowls are a passive working designed to invite traditioal draconic energies into your life or practice! That means power, wisdom, confidence, and prosperity. It can also be used as a way to attract friendly dragon spirits if you incorporate spirit work into your practice. It's inspired by the way money bowls are designed to attract luck and wealth. Feel free to alter and fine-tune it to whatver suits your personal needs.

First, get a bowl. It doesn't have to be that big unless you have a lot you plan on putting in it and need the space. A trinket dish may be enough. It doesn't have to be explicitly dragon-themed, but try to make it something of reasonable quality. We're trying to create something that reflects an abundance of treasure, after all, so disposable styrofoam bowls aren't ideal. Local or handmade pottery is a good choice.

Fill the bowl with your dragon hoard. This can technically be made of anything, but particularly crystals and coins. Shiny curios, paper money, anything that conveys some sort of luxury or value is also acceptable. As tempting as they are, I try to avoid shiny plastic gems and similar items because while they look nice, it's still only a superficial value and they're easily disposable. Don't feel like you need to break the bank for your bowl. Start with whatever you already have on hand, even if it's just some loose crystal beans and spare change. It will grow over time.

Remember to feed your bowl. This is important. If you want it to stay effective, don't let this thing just sit and collect dust. Add little things to the bowl when you can, or burn incense in/over the bowl. Mix around the treasure now and then. I personally let the ashes fall and collect in the bowl. Every now and then I give it a refresh and clean it out to keep everything looking nice, but you may prefer to let the ashes build up over time and have that be part of it. Whatever makes sense for you!

The stuff in the bowl operates like an offering would. This is especially relevant for things like crystals. Everything in the hoard is dedicated to being a part of the hoard now, so try to avoid taking stuff out of the bowl to use it for other purposes and then putting it back in. If you're doing that then you don't have a hoard, you have a storage place for your stuff. In other words, no take-backsies. If you truly need something out of the bowl but don't want to damage the hoard, I recommend just removing it completely from the bowl and replacing it with something of equal or greater value.

[will-o-the-witch]

Hello! Just wanted to pop in and say that you are, and have always been, one of my favorite people to follow on here. You're always wonderful to see on my dash! I hope your day/night goes well, and that life has been treating you well. Stay safe, friend, and I hope life is treating you well <3

Aww thank you so much! Sending the same good energy to you in return :)

[will-o-the-witch]

We need to start claiming more random fictional characters as Jewish. I don't care what's canon, I hope Darth Maul has a wonderful Rosh Hashanah <3

[will-o-the-witch]

im getting really fucking sick of all this “it gets better!” bullshit. im going to have depression for the rest of my life. it’s not going to “””get better””” fuck you

[will-o-the-witch]

I'm not saying I'm both at once, but way to piss on the poor. I'm saying that I've gotten anon hate for both. Like people just projecting one side or the other onto me while citing no evidence as to why they've decided that's what I am.

Part of the Jewish tumblr experience is getting simultaneous anon hate for being both pro-Israel and pro-Palestine, no matter what you do or say. If you're scared into silence then they get mad at you for that too. People just assume the worst, whatever that means to them.

[will-o-the-witch]

An Alternate Look at Correspondences

I see a lot of people speaking about correspondences in a way that doesn’t line up with my study and experience at all, so I figured I’d put something out there and see where discussion leads.

There’s a big narrative on Witchblr that correspondences are an entirely personal phenomenon: that the same herb may be used in entirely different ways by two people within the same practice, and that anything can be substituted for almost anything else with the right mindset. I’m going to challenge that some. 

Personal Correspondences can absolutely exist but I think it’s false to say it’s because of the ingredient itself. Let’s take chamomile: if it’s been used for very similar goals across traditions and cultures for generations, there’s probably a reason chamomile is associated with sleep. Our ancestors didn’t pull correspondences from nowhere, they were pulling what worked. (Now we have some science to break down ingredients and explain where some of that effectiveness came from, but we can’t do that with things like luck or love. I think it’s safe to assume the same trust in logic should be applied.) So if you want to use chamomile to add energy and it works, that says “My personal energy prompted by this ingredient is enough to override the energies of the ingredient itself and still be effective.” Which is awesome and totally a thing! But that’s you being a good energy worker, not chamomile being good for energy.  Substitutions absolutely can be made, magic is designed to be workable with what you have around you. That said, you need to understand the role that ingredient plays and substitute accordingly. You would never substitute sugar with salt in the kitchen just because they look the same, you’d substitute the sugar with something designed to add sweetness! Lemon juice and cream of tartar are wildly different ingredients, but both will work as stabilizers in sweets and can easily be substituted in that context. But I wouldn’t sprinkle cream of tartar over my salmon when I don’t have a lemon. Spells are recipes and the ingredient is there for a reason to play a role; substitute for that role just like you would in a kitchen.

and of course, Different Traditions are going to have different ways they believe ingredients and correspondences work, certain associations based on folklore, etc. which all plays a factor in variation as well. With so much variation and conflicting information, I think setting personal rules for ourselves about how we believe correspondences do (and don’t!) work is an important part in establishing a solid practice. If the ingredients can equally mean whatever, then why would we bother mentioning specific ingredients at all, you know? 

[will-o-the-witch]

When I was little my mom’s meatloaf was my favorite food. But ONLY her meatloaf. I didn’t like anyone else’s, and she told me that she would teach me how to make it when I was older. And when I was like 19? She finally taught me, but she told me never to tell anyone else and I was like weird but okay

Anyway, she was super fucking homophobic and abusive to me when I told her I was gay, so here’s the recipe

4-6 lbs of Hamburger/turkey burger

1 pk onion soup mix OR ranch mix

1 TBs ketchup

1 Tbs spicy brown mustard,

1 Tbs bbq sauce

1 Tbs steak sauce

1 egg

mix, shape into a loaf in a big pan, and bake at 350 for 2 hrs (maybe 2 and a half if you’re feeling dangerous)

You can get almost all of these ingredients at the dollar store, and have leftovers if it’s just you. The leftovers make great tacos if (taco seasoning is also like a dollar). Enjoy your revenge loaf

[will-o-the-witch]

Dragon Hoard Bowls

Dragon bowls are a passive working designed to invite traditioal draconic energies into your life or practice! That means power, wisdom, confidence, and prosperity. It can also be used as a way to attract friendly dragon spirits if you incorporate spirit work into your practice. It's inspired by the way money bowls are designed to attract luck and wealth. Feel free to alter and fine-tune it to whatver suits your personal needs.

First, get a bowl. It doesn't have to be that big unless you have a lot you plan on putting in it and need the space. A trinket dish may be enough. It doesn't have to be explicitly dragon-themed, but try to make it something of reasonable quality. We're trying to create something that reflects an abundance of treasure, after all, so disposable styrofoam bowls aren't ideal. Local or handmade pottery is a good choice.

Fill the bowl with your dragon hoard. This can technically be made of anything, but particularly crystals and coins. Shiny curios, paper money, anything that conveys some sort of luxury or value is also acceptable. As tempting as they are, I try to avoid shiny plastic gems and similar items because while they look nice, it's still only a superficial value and they're easily disposable. Don't feel like you need to break the bank for your bowl. Start with whatever you already have on hand, even if it's just some loose crystal beans and spare change. It will grow over time.

Remember to feed your bowl. This is important. If you want it to stay effective, don't let this thing just sit and collect dust. Add little things to the bowl when you can, or burn incense in/over the bowl. Mix around the treasure now and then. I personally let the ashes fall and collect in the bowl. Every now and then I give it a refresh and clean it out to keep everything looking nice, but you may prefer to let the ashes build up over time and have that be part of it. Whatever makes sense for you!

The stuff in the bowl operates like an offering would. This is especially relevant for things like crystals. Everything in the hoard is dedicated to being a part of the hoard now, so try to avoid taking stuff out of the bowl to use it for other purposes and then putting it back in. If you're doing that then you don't have a hoard, you have a storage place for your stuff. In other words, no take-backsies. If you truly need something out of the bowl but don't want to damage the hoard, I recommend just removing it completely from the bowl and replacing it with something of equal or greater value.

[will-o-the-witch]

blog goals: making someone feel a little less sad

[will-o-the-witch]

Spirits are fluid, and move as such. The devil you met in the woods will not be the same as when you called him into your home, will not be the same as when he took your hand at the river banks. They are not wholly separate, just different.

[will-o-the-witch]

Reminder that spring will always come back, music will never stop being created, and there are still so many books left to read! You’re alive! You’re alive! You’re alive!

[will-o-the-witch]

Magen David Pride Flags except I fixed the sizes and the colors to better soothe my neurodivergent brain

Feel free to use them for whatever without credit. I wouldn't stop you even if I could, it's all in the public domain anyway

[will-o-the-witch]

You've gotta love Jews more than you hate Nazis.

You've gotta love trans folks more than you hate TERFs.

You've gotta love your unhoused neighbors more than you hate the billionaires.

You've gotta love immigrants more than you hate ICE.

You've gotta love queer kids more than you hate christian fundamentalists.

You've gotta love fat people more than you hate the diet industry.

You've gotta love disabled people more than you hate the insurance companies.

You've gotta love your fellow humans more than you hate the worst that humanity has to offer. You don't have to like every person you're fighting for, and you sure as hell don't have to give up your righteous anger, but hate is ultimately corrosive.

You've gotta love.

[will-o-the-witch]

I have nothing clever to say about it, bar exam prep just sucks